Pages

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Its easier to get your child on a schedule or to sleep if you have a routine. This lets your child know that soon it will be time to sleep, and no longer time to play. I started a bedtime routine when my little girl was about 3 weeks old, and it took. It just happens that 1 am was her dedicated bedtime. She went to sleep, because she knew it was bedtime. Now, Emma, wouldn't sleep in her own bed.. ever. But, after starting her bedtime routine, she would sleep in her own bed. Then 3-4 hours later she would wake up to eat and wouldn't go back into her own bed. Eventually, she slept through the night and grew out of that.

Its very easy to make a bedtime routine. Basically, you need to do the same thing every night. You can do this starting from a newborn, or wait until their a little older. Whenever you feel it is time to put them on a schedule.

Here's how you do it:

First: Pick a bedtime.

Now, this is completely your choice. Different families have different lives, so different times work better. Until after a year old, your baby should sleep 10-12 hours at night (depending on the child), so think about the time that they will be wanting to get up when you make their bedtime. For instance, if you have to drop your baby off at a baby sitter or daycare, or take other kids to school, pick the time you would need to get the baby up and work backwards, allowing them 10-12 hours of sleep. In my case, her daddy work late a lot, so we kept her up a little later, so she could see him before going to bed. I choose to put her to sleep at about 8:30, and then she wakes up at about 8:30. Now remember, this is the time you put your child in their bed asleep, not when you start your routine.

Second: Choose Your Routine.

This is the same thing you will do every night. It's good to spend quality time with your child doing these things. You can pick one or two things or more. Try it out and do what works for you. I'll list a few suggestions to get you thinking, but it can be anything you like.

Routine Ideas:

Getting a bath

Reading a bedtime story

Putting on lotion (maybe the nighttime one?)

Saying your prayers

Getting a bottle

Eating dinner (if they are old enough)

Giving mommy/daddy/brother/sister/pet hugs and kisses

Changing into bedclothes

Sleeping with the same blanket

Sleeping with the same stuffed animal

Getting rocked to sleep

Getting sung a lullaby

Cleaning out babies nose

Cleaning out babies ears

Cleaning belly button (after the umbilical cord falls off, its still dirty for a little while)

Saying good night to a stuffed animal

Snuggling with mommy or daddy

Rocking in the same rocking chair

Eating dinner together

This was our routine

1. Eat dinner: usually rice cereal or a vegetable (or both)

2. Clean out nose: she was a very stuffy baby

3. Bath: this is what helped me a lot, I noticed she fell asleep easier after a bath, so I started giving her one every night. She cried, and I think that is what made her tired, but eventually she grew out of that.

4. New diaper and lotion: I used the Johnson's bedtime lotion and a face lotion

5.Clean out ears: babies get ear wax too, and comes right out after you take a shower. Plus they sell baby q-tips (which, I love!)

5. Bed Clothes: I made the decision when she was 1 month old, that the sleepers with the feet were just for bed.

6. Reading a bedtime story.

7. Saying our prayer: She had this bunny that when you pressed it, it said a bedtime prayer. so every night we said goodnight to the bunny and said our prayers.

8. Getting a Bottle/Nursing: this was done in the same rocking chair, with the same blanket and a stuffed animal to cuddle with.

9. Singing lullabies: she loved this, she would actual "sing" with me until she fell asleep.

This routine took about 2 hours every night, yes its long, but then she was all snug in her bed!

Once your baby is fine with the nighttime routine, you can make a nap time routing. Just let it be very simple and quick. Maybe reading a story or getting rocked to sleep? And let dad or big brothers or sisters help out! Maybe they can help with the bath, sing a lullaby or read the bedtime story?

When my baby was born everyone told me
that you cannot spoil a baby, that you cannot hold them too much. Well, I don't
know if that's true, but I do know that my little girl did not sleep in her own
bed until she was almost 4 months old! She was perfectly content being held or
sleeping in bed with mommy and daddy.

When Emma was a few days old she started
not wanting to be put down, at all! She woke up the second you put her down,
she screamed when she got a bath or a diaper change and she hated the swing we
had bought her. Every baby is different. Some won't mind being put down to
sleep, and others like mine, just aren't having it. If this is how your baby
is, just know that you are not alone! I must have tried everything until she
finally started to be alright with laying in her own bed. I remember being
excited for her to even lay in her bed for 15 mins by herself, it was just THAT
bad.

There was one morning when Emma was about
a week old and she started crying and her dad picked her up, I was asleep. He
woke me up and I begged him to hold her for a few more minutes (I averaged
about 3-4 hours of sleep a day, so I was desperate), but he had to leave to go
to work. then he said, "She wants you anyway". He handed her to me
and she instantly stopped crying a fell asleep on my chest. I was very
reluctant, to be the "co-sleeper parent". But like I said, I was
desperate. So, she slept with me for 4 hours, the longest she had slept
ever! Through out the next day, I tried to get her to sleep alone,
and when I got really desperate, I gave in.

I was nursing at the time, so I would lay
on my side, and lay her next to me and nurse. I would burp her and then she
would fall asleep next to me. Sometimes I would fall asleep while I was
nursing. I was so nervous about her laying with me that I would wake up every
hour. I had to lay on my side because of nursing her, and even after nursing,
there wasn't much room left. It was kind of uncomfortable, but I was getting
some much needed sleep. After I caught up on a little sleep, we started to
really try and get her to sleep in her own bed. At 4 months old she finally,
slept in her own bed for 8 hours. By 6 months she was completely on a schedule:
2, 2 hour naps a day and bed for 12 hours a night. It might have took me longer
than it will take someone else, but I'm proud of having a sleeping baby in her
own bed.

These are some of the things I tried. If
one doesn't work for you, try another one. Just don't give up! Everything a
baby does is a phase, so enjoy the cute one's and remember that the tough one's
won't last long!

1.Make
a Bedtime and Nap Time Routine

This is the most important thing. Start
with a bed time routine, do the same thing every night, so they know what is
coming. Then, do something similar for nap time, so they began to make
connections with the routine and time to sleep. Younger babies don't need
scheduled naps because they sleep so much. But when they are a little older,
you can put them on scheduled naps and feedings (which is great!). If you don't
pick their bed time, they might make their own bed time and not want to sleep
until 2 am. Go here to see my article on ideas for making a routine that works
for you.

2.Try
a Pacifier.

Emma, my stubborn baby, wouldn't take one.
She tried it for the first few days, but then realized it wasn't giving her
milk. She also only took one bottle, The Tommee Tippee Bottles (sold at Babies R Us). Try a pacifier, if you
are really set on getting your baby to use one and they won't take it, try a
bunch of different brands, the Soothie Pacifiersare one of the most popular pacifiers. The
same style comes in different brands, and this is what most hospitals use. Just
keep putting it back in their mouth when they spit it out. If they still never
take to it (like my baby), at least you don't have to wean them off the
pacifier!

Ways to get your baby to take a pacifier:

1. Soak the pacifier in sugar water in the
fridge.

2. Use a pacifier medicine taker and fill
it with breast milk, formula, or sugar water.

3. Use the bottle nipples as a
pacifier.

3.Swaddle
Them

This imitates the womb when they were so
tight they could hardly move. Try swaddling your little one, some babies love
it and others hate it. Learn how to correctly swaddle a baby here.

4.Rock
Your Baby to Sleep

Remember how your little one kept you up
all night kicking when you were pregnant? That's because you moving through out the day would put
them to sleep, so they were awake when you wanted to sleep. Rocking the imitates how they feel asleep in the womb. You can
try a glider or rocking chair, most people get these for the nursery. You can
even bounce you baby in an up down motion while rocking around. Rocking them
will put them into a deeper sleep and they might not wake up when you move them
to their own bed.

5.Keep
the Lights Low

Try to keep it dark, don't turn on a light
when you go to get them from their crib if they haven't slept. Let them know
that when it's dark, its time to sleep. You might have to buy black out
curtains for the babies room, so that it stays dark.

6.Keep
Them The Right Temperature

Try to cover them with a blanket, or put
them in a sleeping shirts for babies. Make sure that they aren't to hot or to
cold. Dress them in the right clothes and make sure your temperature in the
house follows. We had to close her vents sometimes because it would get too
cold in our babies room. Sometimes babies will get overheated when they
are swaddled or when they are crying.

7.Stay
Quiet

Never yell at your baby. If you get
frustrated walk away, take a few deep breaths and come back. They can't help
it, they don't know what to do. If your baby won't sleep don't talk to them, or
to someone else. Don't talk on the phone or watch tv if you rock them. Try to
stay quiet and talk them in a low soothing voice letting them know that its
ok.

8.Play
Music

We didn't have a cd player and cd.. but we
did have an old phone and an sd card. So we have a phone that plays music in
her room constantly. You can get the baby lullaby songs, or the baby
classical music. We played Enya for a while, because she has really soft music
that I used to play to help me sleep when I was pregnant. Music can help sooth
the baby. If you want, you can even record yourself singing your babies
favorite lullaby and play that. It would be just like you were in the room
singing to them.

9.Sing
to Them

I am a terrible singer, but my baby
doesn't think so! :) She loves to be rocked and sung to sleep. You can sing
anything, but learning lullabies isn't so bad either. I even made up my own
song for her. After you lay your baby down keep singing. Sing until you slowly
walk out of the room. If they start to cry, move into their eye sight and keep
singing. It might take a while, but staying in their eye sight lets the know
that they are still safe in the crib.

10.Make
Their Bed Soft

Baby mattresses are hard, and it
is not recommended to lay them on pillows or anything that can conform around
their face and be hazardous of suffocation. But, they do sell mattress covers,
that go under the sheet and makes the crib bed softer. With the bassinet, you
can wrap the mattress in a soft blanket, but make sure there are no ends
sticking up.

11.Make
Them Full

If your baby is fairly less than 4 months
old, nurse them, or bottle feed them. Some babies fall asleep eating. Let them
be completely full and then try to get them to sleep. For older babies, try
rice cereal. Some people put it in their bottle before they go to bed, because
it helps them stay full longer. This isn't recommended, its more recommended to
have them learn that they are full from a spoon. But you can do what is best
for your family.

12.Lay
Them on Their Side

Some babies like to lay in different
positions. Try laying your baby on their side and see if they will sleep better
in a new position.

13.Lay
Them on Their Tummy

This is what worked for my baby. I would
rock her to sleep and then lay her on her tummy, when she would start to fuss I
would pat her back/bottom, and she would go back to sleep. Eventually, I had to
pat her less and less, but at first, I might stand there for almost and hour
before she would finally fall back asleep and stay asleep. If you do this, make
sure your baby can hold their head up enough to turn it to the other side. The
first time you try this, I recommend watching them on a camera screen baby
monitor or going into the room every 15 mins, just to make sure that they
aren't laying face down on their mattress.

14.Prop
Their Mattress Up

For some reason babies sleep better when
laying at an angle. Even in the hospital they prop their beds up at an angle.
You can put some blankets under neath the mattress (crib or bassinet), but just
at a small angle, nothing dramatic.

15.Put
Mommy's clothes in the crib or bassinet

A baby knows it's mommies smell, and it
comforts them. Put the clothes you wear that day in the crib (yes, the dirty
spit up on clothes that you wore that day). If they are clean, they won't smell
like you. If you wear perfume everyday, you can even try spraying a little on
the clothes before you put it in the babies crib. I have done this several
different ways: putting it above or next to the baby, laying the clothes flat
underneath the baby, wrapping the baby in the clothes and rolling the clothes
up in a log style roll and laying them next to the baby. This method tries to
trick the baby into thinking that you are still there.

16.Warm
Blankets

Babies love to be warm. You can put a
blanket, towel, their bed sheet, or even your clothes (from #15) into the dryer
and try to wrap them in it, lay them on it, or roll it up in a log style roll
next to them. I felt very silly putting a shirt that had spit up on it into the
dryer, and then into my babies crib, but if it helps both of us get some sleep
I would be a very happy mommy!

17.Lay
a Pillow Next To Them

If you put a pillow or a rolled up blanket
next to them, it helps to trick them into thinking that someone is still laying
with them.

18.The
Cry It Out Method

I personally, don't believe in this. When
Emma got out of the hospital she had jaundice, so she had to be on a bellibed
(looks like a baby tanning bed) all day. The longer she was on there the more
she hated it. But the doctor simply explained to me that crying
doesn't hurt her, and that she would eventually stop. The truth is: Hearing
them cry hurts you more than it hurts them. Babies need to know its bed time,
and that they are not going to be held all the time. Put them in their bed
asleep, if they wake up leave them for 5 -10 minutes. If they stop, or sound
like they might be falling asleep but the cry again, start counting all over.
If you have to go get them, put them back to sleep, and do the process over. It
might take a week or so, but eventually, they will stop crying so much. But at
least they know you will always come back for them.

19.Car
Rides

This may be the most overused new baby
fear, that you will have to drive them around in the middle of the night. Emma
would fall right asleep in the car and most of the time, she stayed asleep in
her car seat when we carried it in somewhere. She would cry when you slowed
down or stopped at red light. I would be lying if I said I didn't drive her
around a couple times at 3 or 6 am. Car rides work, but use them as a last
resort. You don't want your baby getting dependent on falling asleep like that.

20.Let
Them Sleep With You

Many people love co-sleeping. I wasn't
comfortable with it, it made me more nervous and woke everyone up a lot more. I
won't lie. She would spit up on my bed, kick me, and one time she leaked
through her diaper and I woke up with my face laying on a wet bed sheet. The
only good thing was that she slept a lot longer, I didn't have to get up
through the night and that I knew she was safe. She also learned to fall asleep
on her own, which may have helped her in the long run.

Monday, December 17, 2012

This is such a great an easy way to clean your garbage disposal. It will leave your sink smelling fresh! I keep these in my freezer and use them once a week or if I put a lot of food down the garbage disposal. By blending the ice it keeps the blades sharp, the vinegar cleans it out, and the lemon leaves a fresh scent that you can smell right away!

What You Will Need:

An ice cube tray

1 lemon

Distilled White Vinegar

How To Make:

1. Cut the lemon in small enough wedges where it can fit into the ice cube slots in your ice cube tray (its fine if it sticks out of the top)

2. Place the lemon wedge into the ice cube slots and fill with the white vinegar.

3. After they are frozen, place one in your garbage disposal and turn on (Blending the ice keeps the blades sharp). Use one ice cube every week to keep it clean and fresh smelling!

This is one of our favorite meals to eat. Its super easy to make, and it goes in the crock pot. The toppings are just suggestions, you can use whatever you like. This recipe makes enough for 3-4 (depending on how much your family eats), so you may want to double it for more people.

This is a favorite at my house for dinner. Its an easy weeknight casserole, that only has four ingredients. We usually serve this with a salad or some kind of vegetable. It works great to make ahead of time and freeze to give to someone else or to just have it ready to put in the oven when it needs to be cooked.

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

So Halloween was coming up and I wanted to make a great 1st pumpkin for Emma.

I had the idea to do a pumpkin with her initials on it and her hands and foot prints.
I'm not a big fan of carving pumpkins, its too messy and not little kid friendly. So I decided to paint her pumpkin so she could help with it! I love painting pumpkins, we will be doing this every year from now on.

What you will need:

Ribbon

Base color paint (Pink)

Writing color paint (White)

Paint Brushes

Glitter Paint

Pumpkin

You can choose whatever colors and ribbons you want to use! All the products I used were bought at t craft store (besides the pumpkin).

I started by painting the pumpkin pink and letting it dry, then I repeated until it had about 3 coats of paint on it. Next, I painted the stem of the pumpkin. I used a silver glitter paint that I found at our local craft store, but any color will do. Then, I took a pencil and very lightly drew the outline of her initial, the letter "E". I painted over the pencil with the white paint and tried to make all the lines even. I had to put a few coats of the white so that the pink wouldn't show through. Then Emma got to help. I put her in her high chair and painted her foot with the white paint. Then, I pressed her foot onto the pumpkin. I didn't come out perfect, so I took the paint brush and went over it, and put more coats on it. Then, I painted her hand and did the same process. Any mistakes can be fixed with more pink paint to touch it up. Once all of that was done, I added some polka dots to the back and princess swirls in the top around the stem, again doing multiple coats. Then I tied the ribbon in a bow on the top (picked out to match the paint).

It was a great first pumpkin! It's something that even though she was only 9 months old, she had a hand (and foot) in making. :) She kept trying to pick it up, but we left it on the table out of her reach. She loved getting picked up to look at!

You could also do a fake plastic pumpkin as a keepsake of your babies 1st pumpkin. The real pumpkins are a lot cheaper, though. Good Luck! :)

Happy Halloween Everyone! :)

Please comment if you used this as an inspiration for your own child's pumpkin, or post a picture of the completed project! Thanks for visiting! :)

1. Preheat oven to 375°2. Spread 3/4 of the Alfredo Sauce onto the bottom of a 8X12 baking dish

3. Cook the noodles according to package directions, drain the noodles and then put them in cold water after they are done, to keep them from sticking to each other and to cool them off. [I usually cook 1 or 2 extra noodles, because some will break]

4. In a large sauce pan on medium-high heat, heat the oil, and cook the spinach until tender5. Remove pan from heat and stir in the shredded chicken, ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, salt and egg 6. Lay the noodles flat on the counter [use wax paper to clean up easier]7. Put a small layer of the chicken and spinach mixture on each of the noodles8. Once they are all in the pan, pour the remaining Alfredo Sauce on top of the roll-ups and top with the mozzarella cheese9. Cover the pan with foil10. Bake for 30 minutes, so that the cheese is melted and bubblyEnjoy! :)

Homemade Garlic Alfredo Sauce [recommended]:

1/2 cup of butter

3 oz of cream cheese

2 tsp of minced garlic

1 cup of milk

salt and pepper

2/3 cup of shredded parmesan cheese

Directions: 1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.2. Add the cream cheese and whisk until melted and smooth3. Add the minced garlic and cook for 2 mins, stirring often4. Add the milk and the salt and pepper to taste, let cook for 10-15 mins until the sauce starts to get thick5. Take off the heat and whisk in the parmesan cheese until smooth